Contemporary Fantasy Literature. An Introduction

elective courses

Classroom

The aim of the course is to introduce the student to the basic context and significance of the contemporary form of the genre of fantasy. Students get acquainted with the general overview of the classical and medieval traditions which have shaped the genre in its modern form, as well as the relation of contemporary fantasy works to other kinds of speculative fiction.

The aim of the course is to introduce the student to the basic context and significance of the contemporary form of the genre of fantasy. Students get acquainted with the general overview of the classical and medieval traditions which have shaped the genre in its modern form, as well as the relation of contemporary fantasy works to other kinds of speculative fiction.

The conceptual starting point consists in the examination of the seminal work of the Inklings, especially J. R. R. Tolkien and S.C. Lewis which has defined and shaped the modern form of the genre. Against this context the course provides a general overview of the evolution of fantasy fiction in the course of the last century, paying special attention to interaction of the fantasy fiction with other genres such as science fiction, animal fable, alternative history novel, as well as the fantastic and heroic literature of the Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Also the course tackles the question of the multifarious interactions of fantasy fiction with the conventions of contemporary mainstream postmodernist fiction.

The texts discussed in the course reflect the variety of subgenres existing within modern fantasy, like heroic fantasy, urban fantasy, animal fantasy, comic fantasy or portal fantasy.

A parallel aim of the course is to introduce the students to the theoretical and critical context of the concept of secondary world, from its historical roots in the legacy of medieval literature, through the classic formulations of J. R. R. Tolkien, up to the immediate context of current critical debates on the issue.

The reading list:

1.critical reading:

J. R. R. Tolkien – On Fairy Stories

Ann Swinfen- In Defence of Fantasy, pp. 1- 99

Farah Mendlesohn – Rhetorics of Fantasy, Introduction

Mark J. P. Wolf Building Imaginary Worlds, pp. 16 – 64.

2. Terry Pratchett - We Free Men

3.C. S. Lewis - The Magician’s Nephew ; from The Voyage of the

Dawntreader: chapter :The Dark Island

4. Neil Gaiman – Neverwhere + BBC series

5. Susanna Clarke – Piranesi

6. Susanna Clarke – Mrs. Mabb

7. Susanna Clarke – Mr Simonelli, or the Fairy Widower

8. Neil Gaiman - Chivalry

9. George R. R. Martin – The Hedge Knight

ALEXANDER, Lloyd Chudley. "High Fantasy and Heroic Romance." The Horn Book Magazine.

ATTEBERY, Brian. Strategies of Fantasy. Bloomington/Indianapolis, 1992.

CARROLL, Shiloh. Medievalism in A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones. Cambridge, 2018.

CHANCE, Jane. Tolkien’s Art: A Mythology for England, Lexington, 2001.

FIMI, Dimitra/HONEGGER, Thomas (eds.) Subcreating Arda: World-building in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Work, its Precursors, and its Legacies. Zurich and Jena, 2019.

FLIEGER, Verlyn. Interrupted Music” The Making of Tolkien's Mythology, Kent and London, 2005.

HONEGGER, Thomas. “(Heroic) Fantasy and the Middle Ages – Strange Bedfellows or an Ideal Cast? “, Itinéraires [Online], 2010-3 | 2010.

Edward JAMES/Farah MENDELSOHN(eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature. Cambridge, 2012

MANLOVE, Colin. Fantasy Literature of England. London, 1999.

MANLOVE, C.N. Modern Fantasy: Five Studies. Cambridge, 1975.

MENDLESOHN, Farah: The Rhetorics of Fantasy. Middletown, Connecticut, 2008.

MENDLESOHN, Farah/JAMES, Edward (eds.). A Short History of Fantasy. Faringdon, 2012.

SENIOR, W.A. “Quest Fantasies.” The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature. Eds. Edward JAMES/ Farah MENDELSOHN. Cambridge, 2012, 190-199.

SWINFEN, Ann. In Defence of Fantasy: A Study of the Genre in English and American Literature since 1945. London, 1984.

TIMMERMAN, John H. Other Worlds: The Fantasy Genre. Bowling Green, Ohio, 1983.

WOLF, M. J. P. Building Imaginary Worlds: The Theory and History of Subcreation, New York and London, 2012.

WOLFE, Gary K. Critical Terms for Science Fiction and Fantasy: A Glossary and Guide to Scholarship. New York, 1986.

Knowledge

Students will be able to:

K_W02- understand key terminology, well established methods and theories of literary studies in the context of fantasy literature.

K_W03- describe methodology and recent developments in English literary studies in the context of fantasy literature.

K_W04- describe the relation between literature and historical and cultural processes on an advanced level in the context of the tradition of speculative fiction.

K_W07 - explain principles of designing literary studies, with special focus on selecting appropriate methods and tools in formulating research questions as relates to the context of speculative fiction.

Abilities

Students will be able to:

K_U01- employ the terminology and methodological tools from literary studies

K_U02- employ the methodology of literary studies within English studies, respecting the ethical norms and copyright law

K_U04- implement knowledge to describe a problem and identify means to solve it, thereby completing a project in literary studies

K_U11- design one’s own development

Social competences

Students will be ready to:

K_K02- undertake life-long learning and personal development, applying skills and competences to select subjects and projects optimally suiting one’s personal interests

K_K03- value responsibility for one’s own work and respect the work of others, adhering to the professional and ethical norms in various projects and other activities undertaken at work, voluntary services, etc.

Education at language level B2+.

- preparation and presentation of an individual project

- participation in discussions

3 absences are allowed.